A Fickle Thing To Grant

The garden was even more beautiful than Valentine remembered. She could see all around the nervous beginnings of blossoming; vibrance hidden under petals building up the courage to be seen. Even in their underdeveloped state, Valentine swore she could see hints of unnatural luminescence - petals that faintly glittered in the light that filtered in the greenhouse windows. She stood in awe for a moment, basking in their subtle beauty and breathing in the clean, fragrant air. It was difficult to place at times, but Valentine swore the air was clearer up here. 

Perhaps it had to do with the cold - being so high up in comparison to the rest of Burrowgatory had taken its toll with the constant frigidity, after all - but Valentine was more apt to place it on something such as the lack of cars or vehicles up here. Burrowgatory air often smelled chemical in the deepest parts of the city, where exhaust fumes took away from the refreshing air Valentine experienced in more forested and less-populated areas. Up above, Valentine doubted vehicles were practical - or even anywhere near usable. She found it difficult to picture a metal machine in the streets of the Heavenly Embassy as clearly as she could below…

“Val? Are you ready?” Dove’s voice was gentle, though they had left Valentine’s side and now stood a short distance away. They held a watering can in their hands, the paleness of their skin bordering the white and gold of the metal thing.

“Yeah! Sorry, just.. It really is gorgeous here…” Valentine breathed as she spoke, inhaling more of the sweet floral perfumes that filled the greenhouse. The ambrosia was the most unique scent she could detect from the batch - an unusual aroma of vanilla and ‘sunshine,’ as cherubuns described it. Valentine couldn’t exactly distinguish what ‘sunshine’ was meant to smell of, but the vanilla was so distinct the other component hardly mattered.

“Oh, it really is… You’ll have to see it when everything is ready for harvest - oh, it’s just too beautiful for words, really..!” Dove spoke in their usual way - light and breathy with excitement. A characteristic clasp of their hands might have accented their words if not for the watering can, which they now held out to Valentine. She took it gently, though she soon realized it was much heavier than she was expecting. It made sense why Dove had carried it so carefully with two hands now - though Valentine only took the handle with one hand. That way, her other would be free to tilt it however she needed when the time came. 

“I guess this is for my flowers-” she looked towards them now that she could recall them with more clarity, a little gasp escaping as she took in just how breathtaking they’d become. From the tiny seeds she had planted only a few weeks prior to iridescent, shimmering buds that lit the soil they grew from, her flowers seemed almost unbelievably beautiful for something that wasn’t even complete yet.

“They’re beautiful, aren’t they?” There was a pause before Dove spoke again, the silence filled with the awe Valentine felt so certainly swirling in her chest. She knew ambrosia was beautiful, but seeing her own, healthy buds shining so brightly somehow outshined anything she had seen before. She reminded herself that she couldn’t be too proud - there was still such a long road ahead before the ambrosia was fully bloomed - and she still had to take care of it in the meantime. That was what she was here for.

“Yeah… I should probably take care of them so they stay beautiful, right?”

Valentine stepped along the tiled path, hooves steady in an effort to keep the water inside the can that held it. She kept each movement minimal, her eyes glued to the gentle-sloshing just inside the can. Something about the water gave it the same glow as the flowers - signaling to her that it was something just as precious. She glanced over each bloom as she stopped before the patch she'd planted, noticing that they almost seemed brighter with her closeness. Perhaps a trick of the light, but she somehow found that difficult to believe.

“Okay, this shouldn't be too difficult… Just try to evenly distribute water between all the flowers. Have about thirty-seconds for each plant, but try to move the stream around rather than just keeping it in one place - this way, every plant is taken care of,” Dove instructed, their hands drifting forwards to take Valentine’s arm. For the first few seconds, they guided her and kept her watering arm even and steady. Slowly, though, their hands slid back towards their own body and let Valentine take the lead. It was easy work, if not a bit nerve-wracking; she couldn’t help the minor perspiration threatening her brow just by seeing the soil turn a deep brown as gold-glittering water seeped into it. Dove only nodded encouragement when she looked over her shoulder, though, so she assumed she must have been doing it right.

“And… That will be enough! I think they’ve been plenty well-fed.. They’re very unique flowers - and the water you poured is special in its own right. It’s condensed in the clouds the embassy is built on; normal, impure water would do nothing for ambrosia. It might actually even harm it, as the flowers are very, very delicate. This water is pure and able to handle their delicacy, but any other water… Well, the flowers wouldn’t get nutrients, and would almost instantly shrivel up. They would be completely useless… And we only have such a limited stock, as it is,” Dove sounded more serious than usual, their voice uncharacteristically solemn. Their face was twisted in a quiet expression of worry, though it was  quick to fade with a relieving intake of air. Valentine glanced inside the watering can she still held, noting the gleaming water that still remained. Even in an area with so little light, the water seemed to consistently shine as though it were its own light source; Valentine even swore the inside of the can was a tad more bright than it should’ve naturally been. It did make sense…

“It sounds very important… Did you want me to put what’s left of it anywhere specific? I wouldn’t want to just leave it out, where anyone could knock it over…” Valentine turned more fully to Dove at the question, noting how their eyes flicked towards the spot before their hand did.

“Oh, just over there is fine - on that overhead shelf.”

The shelf was a bit higher up than Valentine trusted, leading her to push the can as far back as it could go until it was pressed against the wall. At least that would avoid any accidents if a succubun was just a bit too careless…

“Oh, Val..? I’ve been meaning to ask you something…” Dove’s voice was quiet, almost nervous. Uncharacteristic for their usual spoken-with-a-smile tone. Valentine’s fingers hovered on the can, her heartbeat suddenly palpable in her chest. She had been doing such a wonderful job of not thinking that it seemed as though the problem hadn’t existed, if only for a moment. She didn’t turn to face Dove, instead closing her eyes. 

“Yes? What is it?” A pause. Valentine could hear the steady palpitations in the silence. Her chest heaved with unnaturally heavy breaths that she tried to soothe.

“Are you… Really okay? I know when we last met, you just said you were tired… Has something been keeping you up?” Something flashed against Valentine’s eyelids at the words and she opened her eyes, letting a hand drift up to rest against her heart, “I know you’ve seemed fine today, but… Well, I wanted to ask just in case. I want to be someone you can talk to - I’m stronger than I look..! And I care about you.”

Valentine’s other hand slid away from the watering can, joining its sibling at her heart. She breathed for a moment, rolling over the thought in her head.

“...Oh, no - I really am fine. Too many night shifts, ‘s all.” The lie didn’t relieve the feeling in her chest or the newly rising lump in her throat.

“Okay… I trust you.”